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averages. 23 Unfortunately, we don t yet know how replicable these results are or how exactly it works. Still, they suggest some exciting possibilities. Recent evidence supports the idea that the experimen-tal reality, or vividness of mental imagery, determines how strongly it affects physiology. 24 Dreams, which everyone experiences every night, are also the most vivid form of mental imagery most people are likely to expe-rience under normal circumstances. Dreams are so vivid that we have difficulty in telling them from waking real-ity. Therefore, they are also likely to be a source of highly effective healing imagery. Furthermore, laboratory stud-ies at Stanford University and elsewhere have revealed a strong relationship between dreamed imagery and phys-iological responses. This fact indicates that in lucid dreams we may have an unparalleled opportunity for de-veloping a high degree of self-control of our bodies which might prove useful for self- healing. In 1985 I wrote: file:///H|/KaZaA%20Lite/My%20Shared%20Folder/((lucid)%20dream...0Stephen--Exploring%20The%20World%20Of%20Lucid%20Dreaming.htm Since while dreaming we generate body images in the form of our dream bodies, why should we not be able to initiate self-healing processes by con-sciously envisioning our dream bodies as perfectly healthy during our lucid dreams? Further, if our dream bodies do not appear in a state of perfect health, we can heal them symbolically in the same manner. We know from our investigations that such things can be done. Here is a question for future lucid dream research to answer: If we heal the dream body, to what extent will we also heal the physical body? 25 Five years later, the question remains as intriguing as ever and has yet to receive a definite answer. There are, however, intriguing anecdotes: My findings are that healing is possible in lucid dreams. I had a lump in my breast which I took apart inside my body in a lucid dream. It was a beautiful, geodesic cathedral-like structure! A week later the lump was gone. (B. P., San Rafael, California) About a year ago, I sprained my ankle.... It was very swollen and difficult to walk. In a dream I remember running... and suddenly I realized that I couldn t pos-sibly be running with this ankle so I must be dreaming. At this point I began to come out of my dream, the pain of my ankle started to fade in, but then I reached for my ankle with my dream hands which caused me to tumble in my dream. As I held my ankle I felt a vibration similar to electricity. Amazed, I decided to throw lightning bolts around in my dream. That s all I remember of the dream, but I awoke with next to no pain in my swollen ankle and was able to walk on it with considerable ease. (C. P., Mount Prospect, Illinois) Of course, these stories are anecdotal. We have no way of knowing whether lucid dreaming had anything to do with the reported improvements. B. P. s lump could have gone away by itself anyway, and C. P. s sprained ankle might have been on the threshold of healing just at that moment. Controlled scientific studies are the only certain way to determine the true potential of the healing dream. 12 Life is a Dream: Intimations of a Wider World I am standing quietly alone in a room when I become aware that I am dreaming. After enjoying a few soft som-ersaults in the air near the ceiling, I consider what to do next. Shall I fly somewhere? Visit someone? Then I recall my intention of seeking the meaning of life and decide to Pursue this task. Realizing I would prefer to be outdoors, I leave the room and walk into the kitchen. My sister appears to be engaged in some activity near the sink. I Pause to ask if she would like to go flying with me. She Declines the invitation, saying she is about to fix a cup of tea. I tell her I will be right back, and feel mischievous as I m fully aware that I m about to go off on an adven-ture. Outside, the evening is clear and quiet with stars shining brightly. I float comfortably on my file:///H|/KaZaA%20Lite/My%20Shared%20Folder/((lucid)%20dream...0Stephen--Exploring%20The%20World%20Of%20Lucid%20Dreaming.htm back, gazing up at the heavens. I notice the moon is not visible and as-sume it has already gone down. I d like to see it, though and figure that if I rise high enough I should be able to. Immediately I begin to ascend, still in the same position. When I come to some power lines I hesitate and won-der how my body will react if I try to float through them. This concerns me only briefly as I say almost aloud, Wait a minute, whose dream is this, anyway? This is no obstacle! Having expressed this, I find I am now either beyond them or they have disappeared and I am beginning to rise a bit faster. I decide at this point to visit the moon. I hold my hands out in front of me and fly upwards into the sky. Moving more and more rapidly, soon I sense a roundish shape appearing behind my hands. I lower my hands, expecting to see the moon. The shock of what I see is very dramatic and startling: It is not the moon at all, but quite clearly it is the planet Earth! It is an exquisitely lovely vision, a gem glowing in soft greens and blues with swirling whites against the sable sky. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ] |
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